On Dating Fellow Teachers

I've read articles on it in the TES, I witnessed it as a pupil and now I'm actually part of the trend that is teachers who date teachers.  According to the article I read, it is far more common in our profession that many others.  Indeed, at my former high school there are now three married couples teaching there as well as others dating other teachers there or teachers from other schools.  

It's my (rather subjective) opinion that teaching is quite a unique profession and despite the "ridiculous amount of holidays" we get, actually quite stressful.  I think this is one of the reasons we teachers cling together.  When you have been on your feet teaching groups of 24+ kids all day, marking a stack of homework and planned all your lessons for the next day, you need someone at home who understands that you are mentally and physically exhausted.  Of course it's not as bad as this every day or we wouldn't do the job but it's really nice to be able to go home and talk about your day to someone who understands exactly what you are going through and can lend a supportive ear. I've talked before about how we share ideas for teaching and that's another thing I love about our shared profession. 

However, sometimes dating another teacher can take its toll.  Over the last month both of us have had exam classes and marking and end of year reports and a whole host of other stresses at work and while it's great that we understand each other, two of us so stressed at the same time is not always productive.  The lack of energy between us meant that some things like cooking together went out of the window and we have been living on fish fingers and chips for a while! 

Which is why this week has been so great.  The school year is almost over, lessons are finished, reports are written and there's no more planning or marking for six weeks.  We're almost ready for our big move and just need to pack for our trip to England.  The last two or three days, we've cooked together, had time for each other and been out and about in Bremen sightseeing.  It's just like when we first got together nine months ago and I love it!